


Copper flames

by myotishia



Series: Psyonic [15]
Category: Torchwood
Genre: Gen, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-08
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-18 16:53:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28621350
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/myotishia/pseuds/myotishia
Summary: An urban legend re-emerges to terrorise Cardiff
Relationships: Jack Harkness/Ianto Jones, Owen Harper/Toshiko Sato
Series: Psyonic [15]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1766956
Comments: 10
Kudos: 15





	1. A spark in the night

Gwen walked through the ward, following a nurse. Melody was trotting behind, holding her bag so she could find everything she’d need. The patient they were there to visit had been brought in the night before with deep gashes running across her chest and burns covering the right side of her face. She’d been on a friends hen night and at some point she’d gotten separated from her group. Noone was sure what exactly had happened between the time she lost track of the group and the moment she staggered into the street, narrowly missed by a car that had slammed on its breaks as she stumbled into the headlights. Now she lay in a hospital bed, stitches holding the flesh of her chest together and wrappings covering one side of her face, an IV feeding her painkillers.

“She’ll be a bit loopy so I’m not sure how much she’ll be able to tell you.” The nurse said quietly, stopping just in front of the curtain. 

Gwen gave a reassuring smile in return. “We won’t push her. It’s just best to get a basic statement as soon as possible.”

“I’ll introduce you then grab you some chairs.” 

“Thanks.”

She pulled the curtain aside enough for them to enter. “Miss Tailor? There are two officers here to talk to you. Is that ok?”

“Yea.” The woman replied, her voice rough, as if she’d spent the night screaming. 

Gwen stepped forward. “Hello Jennifer, is it ok if I call you that?”

“Jenny.”

“Jenny. I’m Gwen and this is Melody. We just want to ask you about what happened last night.”

The nurse swept out and returned with two chairs before rushing off again as there was a new beeping sound from the other end of the ward. Jenny slowly looked around with her uncovered eye.

“We can take as long as you need and anything you can give us will help.” Gwen continued in her warm, friendly, way. 

Jenny focused on her. “You won’t believe me.”

“Try me. I’ve seen some strange things in my line of work.”

She paused, thinking it over, the sound of Melody picking out pencils catching her attention. “Is… She taking notes?”

“She’s our sketch artist. She’ll try and put an image together from what you describe.”

“You really won’t believe me.”

“Tell us anyway. It might help to get it out in the open.”

Jenny paused again, the haze of the drugs slowing her thoughts. “It was… taller than me. Pale skin… It had red eyes. Bright red. It laughed when it saw me… But its voice was high pitched. Like those noise boxes you get in halloween toys. Like a witches laugh… I thought he was wearing a costume. He had this spiky helmet on, but his face looked wrinkly… He was wearing this white overall thing with metal clips and a cape… I think it was a cape… He had claws. Metal claws, curved like a cats… He… He slashed at me and… And I…”

“It’s ok. Take your time. You’re safe.”

“I tried to push him back then.... I don’t know how but… He spat fire. It was blue. I just saw blue and white fire… That’s when I tried to get to the street… He just jumped up onto the edge of the roof. Just standing there and then up and into the dark… A person can’t do that, can they?! That was a monster.”

“Jenny, calm down. You need to rest, ok?”

She sunk into the pillows supporting her, a hollow look in her eye. “I told you you wouldn’t believe me.”

“I do believe you. I believe you were attacked. I believe you were hurt and I’m going to try and make sure that it never happens again.”

“I… Sorry, I’m… I’m so tired.”

“You’ve done great. Why don’t you get some sleep now, yea?”

The woman didn’t answer, she just closed her eye and let the painkillers carry her away again. Gwen looked over to Melody who’d been sketching furiously. She’d been reading Jennifers thoughts more than listening to what was being said. Getting a first person view of the night befores events to ensure she got an accurate image of the thing that had attacked the poor woman. She had time to study it, see the sparks it made by running its tongue over its lower front tooth, smell the stench of rotten eggs it seemed to exude, see the dark membrane connecting its arms like a glider. When she was done she looked up at Gwen and gave a nod to say she was ready to go. She closed the book and slid it into her bag with her pencils and pens before standing. The collective sound of the patients and staffs minds swirled in her head, no longer held back by the shield that reading one mind specifically offered. She was better than she used to be at not being overwhelmed but she still found it extremely loud and a little disorientating. Gwen guided her out and to the car before asking about what she’d drawn. 

“It definitely wasn’t human.” Melody took her sketchbook out and opened it to the newest image, handing it to her friend. “I’m sure Owen can work out how it breathes fire but I’m sure it ignites its breath by running its tongue over its bottom tooth. It makes sparks. It had copper claws and a helmet to match.”

“Those look like screens on its wrist guards.”

“They looked like them in person too.”

“We’re probably not looking for just a creature then. Let’s get back and see what the others make of it.” She handed back the sketchbook and got the car started, the thrum of the engine filling the silence. “How did the weekend go?”

She shrugged. “As well as could be expected I suppose. Mum and dad were both quietly breaking down. Persephone was inconsolable. I got to babysit Hayden while everyone else was at the funeral. They didn’t want to put him through that… He’s grown a lot since the last time I saw him. He still really likes biscuits.”

“That’s sweet.” Gwen smiled softly. “I’m glad you got to spend some time with him.”

“Me too. He likes the colour yellow and he hates the tweenies. I ended up putting on music videos for him before his nap… He… Doesn’t look for his mum anymore.”

“So soon?”

“She wasn’t exactly attentive. But his dad’s a decent guy so he’ll be ok. He knows his family love him.”

“Are you ok?”

“Better than I was… My mum kept asking me to quit and move back with her.”

She paused and glanced over. “Are you…”

“No. I’m not going back. Working for Torchwood… It’s the first time in my life I haven’t just felt like a burden.”

“I’m sure they never thought of you like that.”

“Maybe not, but I did. I know this job is dangerous, even when you’re just in the office, but it’s worth it. There’s no going back after it either.”

She nodded, her eyes back on the road ahead. “Torchwood… It isn’t just a job. It’s part of you… I suppose you more than most people.”

“Never stood a chance, did I?” Mel smiled softly. 

“Do you hate it?”

“No. I wish it hadn’t happened the way it did but I’m glad I met Jack.”

“I think all of us could say that too.”

Ianto had immediately recognised the image when he saw it and rushed down to the archives to find where from. He returned with a much older book, bound in leather, the pages yellowed from age. He opened it carefully to show a pencil sketch, dated eighteen thirty nine, that seemed to show the same being. 

“This hasn’t been digitised yet so it wouldn’t come up on the system. It’s a compendium sent from Torchwood one at some point in May eighteen ninety two.” He explained. 

Jack studied the images. “Huh. I remember talk about this. Not much but some.”

“It’s quite a popular urban legend from the time.”

“I spent a couple of decades drinking what was basically moonshine. Urban legends passed me by unless I was in a fistfight with one. Anyway, that was before I landed here. By the time I heard of anything it was just whispers on the wind.”

Melody tilted her head, peeking at the next page of the antique book without touching it. “Who put it together? Wasn’t Torchwood founded in eighteen seventy nine? So, it couldn’t have been an agent.”

“You’ve been doing your research.” Ianto said with an edge of surprise. “It was. This book was found in the personal effects of a man known as Jacob Baker. He lived to be over one hundred and fifty years old due to contact with an alien artefact. He spent the time searching for aliens just to catalogue them, but of course that was what eventually ended his life. I’ll show you the report on him later.”

Gwen frowned. “They don’t look like the same one. And this one looks like he’s had a clothing update.”

“Going by the screens on its wrists my best guess is that they’re both from the same group, just years apart.” Jack picked up Mels sketchbook. “Probably didn’t come through the rift which means it must have some kind of transport. Tosh, any sign of a ship landing recently?”

Tosh quickly sifted through anything unusual her sensors had picked up in the last month. “Not that I can see but if it was a small vessel it could have slipped through unnoticed.”

“Keep at it. Gwen, ask around with your old friends for any reports of strange lights in the sky, unexplained fires or suspicious knife attacks. Ianto, can you collect anything in the archives that could help us put together what this thing wants. Owen, we’re going to have a look around the scene, see if anything’s been missed.” He placed the book down and took his coat from Ianto who was already holding it out for him. “Oh, and nice work today Melody.” He nodded and smiled. 

Mel blushed slightly and pushed down the burning sensation she’d been feeling across the right side of her face. “Of course. I’m happy to help.”

The police tape had been removed from both sides of the alleyway, but the blood hadn’t been cleaned from the pavement yet. It would wash away as soon as it rained but it was a stark reminder of the attack of the night before. Scorch marks decorated one wall, the thin layer of moss having been burned away with the intense heat. On the other side was a wall that separated the alley from a small chip shop. 

“Be right back.” Owen said, leaving Jack a little confused as he watched the medic turn the corner towards the takeaway. He’d tell him off for just going off to get food later. In the meantime he decided to turn his attention back to the scene. The guttering on the opposite building had snapped and shards of black plastic were scattered around. It had jumped onto the lower roof of the shop so it must have come from this side and broken the guttering as it made its way down. It made sense for the thing to use the rooftops to move as the modern streetlights would make it difficult to move undetected otherwise. 

“Jack.” Owen called from the chip shops roof. 

The captain swirled around, caught a little off guard. “So that’s where you went.”

“What else would I be doing? There was a bin round the front I could climb onto and look what I found up here.” He tossed a small, shiny, object down. It was a broken claw that looked like it was made of copper. 

“Any sign of where it went after it got up there?” 

“I can see a few roof tiles have been shifted. Though, thinking about it, the thing can only go so far using the rooftops unless it can walk up walls too.”

“Once it’s out of a populated area it can take the sidewalk.”

He sat on the edge of the roof. “There’s something I don’t get though. I can see how this thing pulled it off but not why. I mean it’s smart enough to use technology, it can breathe bloody fire and it’s aggressive, so why let the girl live? It could have easily killed her and escaped before anyone found out. It doesn’t make any sense.”

“I have a few theories.”

“Care to share them?”

“I’m just hoping I’m wrong.”

“Oh for the love of…” He jumped down from the wall. “What do you  **think** it’s planning?”

“I think it’s a scout. It’s testing how much humans’ll fight back, what they can survive.”

“So it’s going to attack someone else or go for its ship to report back to the rest.”

“Exactly.”

Ianto flicked through yet another file before handing it over to Melody to digitize, “pain redefined” by Disturbed playing quietly from a cd player sitting on a chair near the door. The extra effort would save them both time later and she seemed to like the little document digitizer as much as Tosh had. This was the oldest part of the archive and though it was a lot more orderly than the newer areas the actual system that had been used was a little haphazard. He’d been intending to get to it but it was a big job with having to digitize all of the documents at the same time. All of them were hand written and some had already partially degraded. 

He pulled a book from the shelf in front of him. “This one needs to be placed in library three. If it stays here I think it’ll fall apart before its next use.”

“Got it.” She took it with cotton gloves and placed it in a separate box with three other books, a divider between each. “Mouse damage?” She asked, holding the little alien device against it to make a copy.

“I don’t think so. The books nearest to this wall tend to get slightly damp and they get mouldy over time. I can treat it chemically to preserve it but it’ll still need to be moved.”

“Lovely.”

“If it gets any worse you’ll have to go and get a respirator.”

She frowned behind her dust mask. “I’m fine.”

“With mould spores that have been growing around items that could have come from anywhere in space and time for the last hundred or so years, I’m not risking it.”

“Ok, but only if you do too.”

“I physically can’t get sick. I’ll be fine.” He could almost feel that she was pouting at him as he brushed off the idea and pulled down another heavy book. He checked the index at the front and saw an entry with a familiar title. “I think we’ve got something.”

“Oh?” She cleared a space on the table in front of her for him to place down the book. 

He opened it to the page it had stated and found a report from a Torchwood agent speaking about a run in with the spring heeled demon, then renamed Spring-heeled Jack. It was dated April eighteen eighty nine, a good fifty years after the initial reports of the creature, and described a spree of attacks on mostly women who were out past sunset. They were all linked by the trademark gashes across the victims chests and the extensive burns they were left with. Though there was no image the description of the creature was the same. Torchwood had intended to capture the creature but found themselves trying to bargain with it after it took a hostage. It spoke like a gentleman of nobility and showed an unexpected level of intelligence. They convinced the being that it would be unharmed if it agreed to answer the agents questions and let the hostage go, though the Torchwood of the time didn’t exactly stick to their end of the bargain. The second the hostage was freed they broke the creatures legs and dragged it off for interrogation. It would not speak, even after days in custody and no amount of interrogation would change that. It possessed a military esque level of discipline and eventually it passed away without speaking another word. Its ship was never found and the attacks stopped. Its bones had been preserved and stored at Torchwood One so were most likely long gone. 

“That was… Brutal.” Melody said as she finished reading the report. 

Ianto nodded. “This is why we have the reputation we do. Until very recently this would have still been protocol.”

“But things like this could cause wars. What happened to diplomacy?”

“You’re talking about an organisation put together at the height of British imperialism. The general idea was we could take whatever was thrown at us.”

“How have we not been wiped off the face of the Earth yet?”

“Most races assume we’re a lot more powerful than we are exactly because we acted like we were. That and the Doctor. Let’s just be glad that Torchwood’s changed.”

She absentmindedly rubbed her hand across her ribs. “Yea... Yea, I suppose so.” 


	2. An evening operation

“There have been two unexplained fires and one knife attack in the last month. The fires are hard to connect but the knife attack looks like it could be linked. The victim was a woman out on her own at night, and was left with six gashes across her chest. No burns but her report said she did see a flash of light as she fell down.” Gwen said. “She might not have told the whole story if she thought the police wouldn’t believe her.

Jack sipped his coffee. “If we run out of leads we can try it. Tosh? Did you find anything?”

“There was a small blip twenty two days ago. It could have easily been mistaken for debris re-entering the atmosphere, which is why the system didn’t alert us. Because of its size it also wasn’t tracked so I have no idea where it’s been stored, but it can’t be that far away if the being is using it for shelter. That gives us a smaller search area.”

“Use the crime scenes as a centre point and give us an idea of just how big or small of an area we’re working with.”

“Do you know how fast it can run?”

“No idea. Ask Ianto, wherever he’s got to, he might have found something in one of the old records.”

“No need.” Melody said, pulling off her dust mask as she walked around to the workstations. “We found one other report of a Springheel but it didn’t end in a study exactly. More of a slow execution.” She cringed. “Though it did mention that they suspected it had some kind of military training as it kept its silence from the moment it was captured until its death.”

“Was the body preserved?”

“Yes, but it’s no longer available.”

“Don’t tell me, Canary wharf?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” She handed the document digitizer to Tosh. “That’s all the documentation from archive rooms one through four.”

The tech smiled. “You work fast.”

“Ianto wanted to sort through them to stop them getting damaged so we powered through them. I was moving some of the smaller boxes to their new homes.”

“That solves the mystery of where he went.”

“He rushed up to make coffee when the SUV got back, then got right back into it. Though he just found a mould issue in archive room five so I’ve been banished unless I’m in a full hazmat suit.” 

“It’s that bad?”

“No, but he says if he hears one cough from me I’ll immediately be sent to Owen just in case.”

She chuckled. “Oh dear.”

“Hear that Harper? You’re being used as a threat now.” Jack called down to the medical bay with the utmost fondness in his voice.

The medic walked up, pulling off his gloves. “Wouldn’t be the first time. For once I agree with the tea boy. You shouldn’t risk it. I’d tell him he should be wearing protective gear but: one, he’d ignore me, and two, I doubt mould would do much to him.”

“Find anything useful on the claw?”

“Interesting? Yes. Useful? Probably not. Going by the smell the victim noticed and the blue colour of the flames I’m going to make an educated guess that it’s breathing out a mix of methane and copper sulphide, ignited by the spark it makes with the flat tooth at the front of its jaw. The claw itself has an outer coating of pure copper but it’s meshed with the rest of the tissue. It’s naturally coated in copper. I don’t think that helmet is a helmet at all, it’s part of its anatomy.”

“At least it’s a soft metal so bullets should still be enough to take it down.” 

Melody looked over at him. “We might not need to. The old reports say the springheel was intelligent. It spoke fluently. Maybe you could just scare it off… Or … um… Never mind.” She played with the cuffs of her sleeves as she was receiving a sceptical look. 

“It’s worth a try if we can. Hopefully it gives us that option.” Gwen offered sympathetically. 

“I mean, maybe we could find out why they keep getting sent here. It might not talk but I can always look.” 

Jack didn’t look exactly convinced. “I don’t care about the why if we can just get them to stop, but if not then the information could be useful. For now we just need to pin this thing down.”

“Maybe we could lure it out. It does seem to have a specific type and both attacks were in close proximity.” Tosh noted. 

“It’s risky but unless anyone else has another idea it could be worth a shot. Gwen?”

Gwen sighed. “Let me call Rhys if I’m going to be out late tonight.”

The plan was to act as if they were just going out for a drink after work, hiding the fact that they were carrying more than a few weapons and items designed on planets lightyears away, before Gwen would get separated from the group. It was hopefully going to be too good to resist for the springheel. The night was cold and still as they stepped out onto the Cardiff streets. Though it wasn’t as busy as it would be on a Friday or Saturday night it wasn’t desolate either. Most importantly the groups that were out looked to be mostly male, limiting the aliens other options. Gwen felt nervous. She always did when she knew she was walking into danger. It never stopped her of course, but it was still there. In a way it was useful. She wouldn’t be caught off guard by her own fight or flight response and the adrenaline wouldn’t make her hands shake. She slowed her steps, letting the rest of the team get far enough ahead of her that it would be perfectly reasonable for her to stop and change direction. She looked around as if she’d lost sight of them then chose to turn right and down a side road. It was empty, bar a few crumpled cans and chip papers that had been thoughtlessly discarded. One of the streetlights was dim, leaving a deep shadow that could easily hide a malicious beings approach. She made her way towards it, looking at her phone and acting as if it was dead. The smell of rotten eggs wafted down. She unconsciously felt for the gun hidden under her thick winter jacket, ready to bring this thing down before it set her alight. It landed on cloven hooves, luminous red eyes centred on her.

“Wait.” She said firmly. “I want to talk to you.”

It looked surprised that she wasn’t frozen in terror. “Do you not fear me?”

“No, because I know what you are. Please, come with us. We just want to talk.”

“You take me for a fool earthling.”

“It’s in your best interest to cooperate.”

The springheel flexed its fingers, the leathery membrane that was connected to the outer portion of its hand folding and shifting from the movement. “It would be within your best interest to run for your life.”

“It was worth a try.” She sighed. 

The alien had no time to react as a metal ring closed around its body, pinning its arms to its sides, before another was locked around its ankles. It fell hard and hissed, trying to burn what was attacking it. Jack pulled the fireproof hood over its head before it could ignite its breath and belted it securely at the back of the creatures neck. The SUV skidded to a halt next to them. That being why they’d chosen that particular side street, no one ever parked there as cars were known to get keyed if left for more than a few minutes and walking down there was asking to run into trouble. Owen and Jack hauled the writhing alien up and into the boot of the SUV.

The springheel next saw light when the hood was pulled away. As its eyes adjusted it realised it was in a small, barren, room. A jail cell of some kind. By the time it turned to see what had removed the hood the door had been closed and a heavy lock engaged. The rings that had held it disengaged and clattered to the floor, looking like small metallic rectangles. It blew an intense ball of flame against the clear wall in front of it, finding that the heat did nothing. It scratched at the thick glass but found that too was useless. 

“Earthlings!” It shouted in frustration, stamping its hoof. 

Jack rolled his eyes at the display. “Take it easy. We’re not going to hurt you as long as you play nice.”

“Who are you?”

“Captain Jack Harkness, here on behalf of Torchwood.”

“Torchwood? Here?”

“Oh yea.”

“Then why am I still alive?”

“We want you to go back to whoever sent you and tell them to back off. You’re not welcome here.”

A high pitched cackle filled the air. “From what I have discovered your race is soft and fragile.”

“Why let them live then?”

“I shall say no more.”

“Then let’s change the subject. You’re a scout, aren’t you? Sent to test humanities ability to defend itself.”

The springheel sat on the bench, a smirk decorating its lips as it ignored Jacks words, instead checking the screens on its wrists. Neither responded to any kind of input.

“Feel like talking to me now?” 

It waved a hand as if to tell him to leave in reply, but something caught his eye. This one had all of its claws intact. That’s why it was being so casual about its situation, it wasn’t alone. He turned and sprinted back up the steps. Most of his team had already gone home under the assumption that their job for the night was complete but Ianto remained. There had been a time that he would still have been cleaning up but having an assistant to help him meant he was ready to call it a day. 

“We have a problem.” Jack announced.

Ianto looked up. “Oh?”

“There’s more than one. This one isn’t missing a claw.”

“Ah. Too much to hope that this one’ll tell us where its partner is.”

“Not without a lot of persuasion and I doubt we have time. If its partner realises then it might call in reinforcements.”

“So we need an answer quick.”

“Call Melody. I don’t like asking her to do this but I don’t see another viable option.”

Mel had already settled in for the evening and had considered going to bed when her phone had rang. She’d thrown on some jogging bottoms and a coat over her cinnamoroll shirt before slipping on a pair of trainers and throwing her keys into her bag. Ianto had been waiting outside her building, keeping the engine running to keep the car warm as she rushed down. 

“Sorry to call you out like this.” He said, twelve thirty two showing on the dashboard clock.

She shook her head politely. “I don’t mind. So there’s two of the springheels?”

“Apparently, yes. The one we captured isn’t missing a claw so there has to be another. Are you sure you’re ok with this? I know you don’t like invading anyones mind without permission.”

“They’ve already hurt people so if I can stop them killing anyone I’m ok with pushing a little. I’m just looking for surface information so hopefully I won’t have to probe too far.”

“Just be careful, we don’t know what they’re capable of.”

“I will.”

Back at the hub she trotted down to the cells, keeping just out of sight so she could work. Accessing the aliens mind wasn’t hard as it had no real telepathic defences but translating everything into something she could understand was another matter. The perspective of everything felt wrong and anything written was unintelligible. First she wanted to find where they were hiding their ship. The landscape was familiar at least. The ship itself was very small, barely the size of a bungalow, and had systems to camouflage it. It looked to be hiding in an overgrown garden, next to a caravan that was more rust than solid metal. A blue tarp had been pulled over it and it blended in rather well. She needed to find a street sign or something she could use to get an exact address. She followed the memory, seeing a short flash of a road sign. Bingo. She scribbled it down on a notepad Ianto had given her. Next she needed to find out exactly what they were up to. 


	3. Solar

Jack pulled his coat tightly around himself as he stepped out onto the silent street. At least the area was dilapidated enough that they could easily cover their tracks if necessary, though he was a little concerned that the SUV would be up on bricks by the time they got back. Ianto took a deep breath of the night air, realising that he really needed to get out of the hub more often. The trips out earlier had been the first time he’d been out in a while and if it weren’t for the fact that they were working he would have gladly just stopped and watched the stars in the clear nights sky. Maybe when they were done. 

They made their way around the side of the house, dodging the reaching thorns from overgrown blackberry bushes and the stinging hairs that coated each green leaf of the nettles. The bright blue tarp was visible even under the little light the moon provided. 

Jack lifted the side and smirked. “Oh, now they’re just making it too easy.”

“Have you seen one of these before?”

“Seen? I’ve owned one of these before. Well, I say owned. I liberated it.”

“You stole it.”

“It only had one guard and a basic security system. It was practically being given away.”

He rolled his eyes fondly at the mischievous grin Jack was wearing.

“Anyway, this model has one of the easiest locks to break from the outside.” The captain slipped his fingers under one of the panels and the door popped open at the top so he could easily pull it open manually. He climbed into the ship and glanced around. The place was a mess and it clearly wasn’t the military operation he’d expected. He beckoned Ianto in and pointed to the springheel asleep in its bunk. 

He silently crept over, pulling the fireproof hood from his pocket and getting ready to give the alien a very rude awakening. He held his breath, ready to strike when a blazing red eye opened. Ianto only just managed to bring the hood down before a flash of blue flame scorched his fingertips. Jack took a much harder hit as he was thrown across the room by a powerful kick, the crunch of breaking ribs so much louder than his strangled cry. The springheel rolled out of its bunk and lashed out with its claws, catching Ianto across the chest, blood splattering across the floor. It wrestled with the hood, trying to work out how to open the one clasp that had closed in the struggle. The noise should have woken the whole neighbourhood. Maybe they just thought someones car was getting smashed up. 

Ianto shook off the thought. “Stand down and this doesn’t have to end in someone getting killed.” 

“You’re just another earthling, learn your place!” It hissed and lunged towards the voice, digging its claws into his shoulders, pinning him against the wall. A shot rang out and the springheel crumpled to the floor. 

Jack caught his breath as one of his ribs popped back into place. “You ok?”

Ianto nodded slowly, the wounds in his shoulders burning as they knitted back together. 

Melody had been nodding off as she heard Ianto enter, his jacket folded over his arm and his shirt clearly slashed and stained crimson. 

“What happened?” She gasped, making him jump. He’d forgotten that they’d left her to finish her report. Her idea, not his.

“I’m ok. The springheel was more awake than we thought. Jack shot it but it got a few scratches in first.”

“That looks a lot more than a few scratches.”

He shrugged. “I think I’m more upset about my shirt.”

“Ianto.”

“I liked this shirt.”

“Ianto.”

“It was a good shirt.” He paused as he felt her rest a gentle hand on his arm. “I’m ok. Really. I’ve had a lot worse.”

She sighed, knowing he wasn’t going to let on that he was shaken. “Why don’t you go and get cleaned up? I can sleep in the recovery room for tonight.”

“Are you sure? I don’t mind giving you a lift or calling a taxi.”

“Unless you and Jack have something planned I really don’t mind staying. It’s nearly three already anyway.”

“It is?” He checked his watch and she was almost right. It was actually three fourteen in the morning. “The drive took longer than I thought.”

“Where is Jack?”

“He’s moving the body.”

“Does he need a hand?”

“For a creature primarily made of metal it’s actually very light, just gangly.”

“They do have the ability to glide I suppose so it makes sense.”

“So, why were they attacking people.”

“I’ll tell you in the morning. You look exhausted.”

He couldn’t exactly argue, she was right. The adrenaline had worn off long ago and the idea of just stripping off and crashing sounded oh so good. 

As Gwen entered the hub the next morning she noticed two things: One, Melody was in incredibly early, and two, Jack and Ianto were nowhere to be seen. Neither Tosh nor Owen looked particularly worried about it. Maybe they’d gone “weevil hunting”. 

“Morning.” She said, hoping the look on her face would ask her questions for her. 

Tosh smiled warmly. “Good morning. Melody was telling us that there was a second springheel that Jack and Ianto went to get after we left last night.”

“Oh yea? Where are those two?”

“Taking the springheels ship for a joyride apparently.” Owen grumbled, quietly jealous. 

“What?”

Tosh cut in, amused. “I think it’s kind of romantic. A date in space.”

“Are we telling the springheel that our boss has nicked its ship for the sole purpose of a date?”

“Already have.” Mel laughed. “Though I think it misunderstood. It was more worried about there being a sudden litter of earthling young running around.”

Gwen chuckled and sunk into the sofa. “So, did you find out what they came to Earth for in the first place?”

“They’re poachers.”

“But they haven’t killed anyone.”

“Not like that. Like when baby monkeys are stolen from the wild for the illegal pet trade. They come to Earth with a list of traits the buyer is looking for, mark potential targets and come back later to pick up the ones who’ve healed. The springheels can track anything thats blood they’ve come into contact with so they can come back at any time.”

“What about their military training?”

“Their home planet has mandatory service.”

“What now then?”

“Well, when the ship gets back we’re going to load the springheel onto it and set it to autopilot. It’ll be sent back to its home planet where poaching is very much illegal and hopefully the exposure should stop them returning.” Tosh explained.

Jack had been so excited to be back in the drivers seat of a space ship. It was like he’d never stopped, recognising every light and dial on the control panel. It was comfortable. Ianto wasn’t feeling so confident but he trusted Jack, more than he probably should. He just tried not to think about everything that could go wrong as they left Earths atmosphere, nails digging into the seats armrests. 

“You can open your eyes.” Jack said, his voice warm and soft. 

He hadn’t even realised he’d closed them but as the low light flooded his vision his heart caught in his throat. The vast expanse of space lit by a single burning star, planets closer than he’d ever seen them, and it was all real. It wasn’t like pictures or videos, they didn’t reflect how breath taking it all was. 

“Beautiful, isn’t it?”

“It’s…” There were no words that could fully describe it. Then again they weren’t really necessary.

Jack sighed contentedly and looked out to the universe. “Ianto Jones, there’s so much more out here I want to show you. Planets made of diamond. Lands where the rain never falls… Earth can be so beautiful but compared to this it’s so small.”

“We do have forever. We could see it all.”

His eyes glimmered in the low light. “Yea… We will.”

They sat in the deep silence just drinking in the sight of the solar system like they were the only two people in the whole universe. Ianto interlaced his fingers with Jacks, feeling so insignificant in the grand scheme of things. For that moment he was content with that. A single speck of stardust, unseen by the monolithic forces that governed existence, just one of the innumerable flickers of life. 

“Do you want to see Earth from up here?”

He nodded and watched the universe move. It wasn’t as if he could actually feel the ship itself move so it was very surreal. The Earth looked so colourful, so full of life, clouds swirling as it people went about their days. 

“Not bad for a home planet, huh?” Jack smiled fondly. 

“You love this planet really, don’t you?”

“How could I not? I hated it once, being trapped here, but now… You could say it’s grown on me. Maybe that’s just the people.”

“We could just leave everything behind.”

“What?”

“We’re not but we could… The first ship you found you could have just gone.”

“I thought about it a few times but space can be lonely... It’ll crush you if you let it… Anyway, we can’t go anywhere. Gwen’d hunt us down if we tried.”

He chuckled to himself. “She would as well.” 

“There’s no greater force in the universe than an angry Gwen Cooper.” 

“And someone has to stop Tosh and Owen from taking over the world.”

“I don’t know, they might do it some good.” Jack shrugged. “We should head back down soon.”

“Just a few more minutes.”


End file.
